A long way from Durham, N.H.

To most hockey fans, Atlanta's Darren Haydar would be a relative unknown. To fans of University of New Hampshire hockey, though, Haydar is a huge deal.

The former Hockey East player of the year (2002) was called up by the Thrashers recently and is making a concerted bid to stick around, scoring his first NHL goal last week against none other than New Jersey's Martin Brodeur.

Before Saturday's 6-2 loss to Tampa Bay, Haydar, the 248th pick of the 1998 NHL Draft (by Nashville) and a former Hobey Baker Award finalist, seemed a bit surprised when I called out his name. When we showed him the UNH jersey (top photo), he figured out that we were fans. Dropping the right names, such as Durham, N.H., the Lively Snively Arena and the Rusty Hammer in downtown Portsmouth, N.H., helped, too.

Though I was happy that Haydar signed the Milwaukee Admirals and UNH pucks (shown above), I was also a tad embarrassed, though, that I didn't have a Chicago Wolves puck for him to sign.

As a member of the Wolves, he was named the American Hockey League's MVP last season, after leading the league with 122 points (41 goals, 81 assists) in 73 games and posted an AHL record 39-game point streak (24 goals, 56 assists).